The Knight of Flowers
by Darkglade
Summary: Over the course of his life, he learned the value of cherishing those close to him. Summoned by one who holds no such notions, can he sway his Master from a self-destructive path?


Bursting forth from a magic circle was a feeling Sakuya had gotten used to during his life. Saving others in need was another aspect he had become accustomed to.

Thus, it only took him a split second to analyze the situation and immediately move to defend the wounded boy from the man in a blue jumpsuit wielding a lance.

The man growled, and furiously attempted to break through his defense with wild, vicious swings of his spear.

Sakuya deftly blocked each blow with his limbs, the bandages covering his arms protecting them from the worst of the strikes.

After a few more exchanges, the man jumped back and warily held his weapon up.

"So, he really was the last one huh? How troublesome that I didn't finish him before he summoned you."

He bares his teeth, showing them a feral grin.

"But that just means more foes for me to fight, so I'm okay with this outcome as well!"

As the man moves to reengage, he suddenly halts in his tracks. An annoyed look flashes across his face.

"Tsk, my Master wants me to retreat. Guess we'll have to finish this some other day."

He quickly dashes to the rooftops and takes one last look at them.

"You seem quite strong, so don't die before we have our rematch!"

Having said his piece, he vanishes into the night.

As the adrenaline from the fight wears off, Sakuya is flooded with the knowledge provided by the Grail.

 _A free-for-all tournament for some wish granting device? And I'm a being known as a Servant?_

He looks back at the wounded boy, who he deduces is probably his "Master" based on the information he has gained.

Said boy is still sitting on a ground in a daze, clearly overwhelmed by the rapid pace of events.

He kneels before the child, and holds out his hand.

His mind flashes back to another person he had offered his aid and servitude to.

 _Blue eyes, once as clear as the sky, now muddled by despair._

 _Beautiful orange hair, dirtied by the forest she ran through to reach him._

 _A pure and innocent voice, choked with tears at the death of her loved ones._

He shakes his head to clear those memories away; he had done all he could to ensure that the girl and the world she lived in would have a long and prosperous future.

 _I trust Kotarou; I_ know _that he will give her the happy ending she deserves._

He recalls the determination and stubbornness he had seen on his face in their last meeting.

 _He will be the one to break the endless cycle of destruction for humanity._

Returning to the moment at hand, the boy had reached out to grasp his hand. Sakuya pulls him up and begins to heal his injuries through their contract.

He smiles gently at him.

"I am Servant Berserker, but you can just call me Sakuya. I ask you, are you my Master?"

The boy blinks at him, slightly confused.

"Um, my name is Shirou Emiya, and I don't know anything about this Servant business, Sakuya-san, but thank you for saving me from that other guy."

They head back into the house; Shirou offers to make tea for them, but Sakuya insists on doing it instead as it's his "duty". They get into a brief argument, but eventually compromise on each of them making a cup of tea for the other party.

They sit down at the table with their cups in front of them. Slowly, they simultaneously lift their platters and take a sip.

Their eyes widen at the same time, and begin to treat the other with newfound respect.

"This blend is amazing! In all my years of life, I've never encountered such a unique taste."

"I would've never thought of this combination of herbs! We must exchange recipes sometime."

They clasp each other's hand in a show of comradery.

Sakuya smiles lightly at his newfound culinary partner.

"With our degree of compatibility, this war is as good as ours!"

Shirou chuckles nervously, still confused about the overall situation.

"I still don't know what you're talking about, but I'm sure we'll succeed at whatever it is!"

Truly, a bond forged in steel was born in that moment.

xxx

Rin wasn't sure what she was expecting when she arrived at Shirou's household.

Having rushed there in fear of Lancer returning and undoing all her hard work bringing the "idiot" back to life, she was fully prepared to walk in on a violent engagement.

However, she was only met with silence.

Her eyes narrowed and scanned the surroundings for any oddities.

"Saber, do you sense any enemies nearby?"

Saber, in the process of her own assessment of the situation, could only shake her head.

"I do not sense any strong magical signatures nearby. However; we should remain cautious. There is no telling if this is some sort of cunning scheme devised by Lancer."

Rin nods and slowly approaches the front door. She gives it three firm knocks and waits for a response. To her surprise, it opens promptly. Her confusion is exacerbated by the unfamiliar face she sees.

"Oh? This is a late time to be visiting, Ojou-sama."

The man before her has red eyes and short black hair with a longer strand tied back in a ponytail. He is wearing glasses, dressed in a black butler outfit, and his pose exudes a quiet calm and confidence.

Besides her, Saber stiffens at his presence. Battle-honed instincts alert the Servant that this man is incredibly dangerous.

Rin, unwilling to back down, gives a large smile in response.

"Emiya-kun is a friend of mine who lives here. I just came by to check up on him."

The man smirks and replies,

"Shirou-san is perfectly fine. I just happened to be nearby to lend my aid driving off a rabid dog."

At this point, alarm bells were going off in Rin's head. The reference to a "rabid dog" could only mean one thing.

 _He was the one who drove off Lancer?! But the only type of people who can do that are Servants, Dead Apostles, and incredibly powerful magi, but I'm not sensing any sort of magical energy from him at all!_

At this point, Saber had tensed up and was clearly expecting a fight to break out at any moment.

Meanwhile, Rin was panicking on the inside.

 _This is bad. If he could chase Lancer away then he must be strong. I don't have any idea what he is capable of, I'm on unfamiliar territory, and I don't even know for sure if Emiya-kun is okay or not-!_

"Tohsaka-san? What are you doing here?"

Shirou's question immediately cuts through the tension like a knife through butter.

"Oh? You know her, Shirou-san?"

Shirou nods in response.

"She's a classmate of mine from school."

He turns towards her.

"Do you want to come in? It must be important if you come all the way out here at night."

Rin's eyes dart between Shirou and the man several times. She still isn't sure what the exact circumstances are and glances over at Saber to see her reaction.

The King of Knights looks troubled by the situation, but eventually relaxes.

"If they do not attack first, then I see no reason for there to be hostility. I believe there is no immediate threat."

Rin nods at her Servant's assessment and crosses the threshold with Saber following at her heels.

xxx

Shirou has had a bizarre day.

In the short span of only a few hours, he has witnessed a fight that no mere humans could have enacted, gotten killed, brought back to life, almost killed again, saved by a strange man that also happens to share his passion for cooking, and finally received a visit from the most popular student at his school with an unfamiliar woman by her side.

Yeah. It doesn't get much stranger than that.

Now, he's about to sit down to have tea and snacks with the idol of his grade, a man he's just met, and a woman he's never met before.

"Is the tea to your liking, Tohsaka-san?"

"It's quite delicious, Emiya-kun. I must commend your efforts; I've never had tea as fine as this before."

He chuckles and shrugs the compliment off.

"It's only so good because Sakuya-san gave me some pointers."

The Servant in question smiles gently as he refutes the point.

"Don't sell yourself short, Shirou-san. Your cooking skills were already exemplary before I came along. In fact, I've learned some new techniques myself from you."

Saber, while she thoroughly enjoyed the refreshments, felt that they should cut to the heart of the matter.

"Rin, I believe we should get to the crux of the issue?"

Said Master, who felt a headache growing as she watched the two men commend each other's culinary abilities, agreed.

"Emiya-kun, are you aware of what is happening right now?"

Shirou paused at the question before recalling the events that have transpired so far.

"I don't really know what's going on, but here's what happened to me so far."

Rin listens patiently as he explains, and once he is finished, asks the one question that's been burning in her mind.

"So, what exactly is your relationship with Sakuya-san?"

Shirou scratches the back of his head before perking up as if he remembered something.

"Ah, I think I remember him saying he was Servant Berserker or something similar and then asking me if I was his master? I didn't really understand what he meant at the time."

Rin felt her stomach drop out from under her as she confirmed her worst fears; the bumbling idiot in front of her really was part of the Holy Grail War.

Saber too immediately stiffened as she realized what the boy's words meant.

Sakuya was a Servant, and a strong one too if he managed to repel Lancer with ease.

Shirou was a Master, someone they would need to defeat to win the war.

And finally, they were effectively in enemy territory.

Rin's pragmatism screamed at her to simply eliminate Shirou here and now, but her stubborn magus pride shouted it down.

After all, winning the war wouldn't be much of a victory if she was fighting clueless idiots with no idea what was going on.

 _And besides, I went to all that effort to save him in the school. I want him to have a fighting chance, at the very least._

Rin takes a deep breath, and begins speaking once she has collected her thoughts.

"You are now part of a conflict between magi that has been going on for centuries."

She proceeds to explain the basics of the Holy Grail War while Shirou listens attentively.

Once she finishes, he summarizes what he gleamed from her lecture.

"So, I'm a Master, and Sakuya-san is my Servant. You're a Master, and I'm guessing the woman with you is your Servant. We have to fight five other Master-Servant pairs to win the Holy Grail, which is an omnipotent wish-granting device."

Rin slams her hand on the table.

"First of all, you shouldn't reveal the true name of your Servant to anyone-"

"Ah, Rin-san, I don't mind if my true name is known. I doubt that anyone would be able to discover my legend even if they knew."

Sakuya interrupts politely.

Rin peers intensely at him, then backs down.

"Fine, I guess you can defer to your Servant's judgement on this matter. Secondly, there is no "we". There can only be one winner, which means that we are enemies in this conflict. Can you get that through your thick skull?"

Shirou blinks at her, then asks.

"Then why are you trying to help me so much?"

Rin flushes and turns away.

"It - it wouldn't be much of a victory if I beat someone who doesn't even know they're in a war, so I'm doing this so we're on even footing."

She turns back and glares at him.

"I'll escort you to the church so you can get registered as part of the war. But tomorrow, we'll be enemies, so don't expect me to show any mercy. Got it?"

"But I don't want to fight you, Tohsaka-san," Shirou calmly replies.

"Well that's too bad! Because you're going to have to fight if you want to survive!"

Rin abruptly stands up and strides to the door before briefly glancing back.

"Well? Are you coming or not? I don't have all day you know!"

Saber wordlessly moves to stand by her Master's side.

Shirou and Sakuya exchange looks at Rin's antics.

"Hah, I've never seen Tohsaka-san be this forceful at school."

"She is quite the fierce lady. You should be careful around her, Shirou-san."

They follow the women out the door and to the church.

xxx

"I don't like that guy."

Shirou makes his grievances known without hesitation.

"Oh, the fake priest? I've known him for ten years, and he's always been difficult to get along with."

Rin reveals her own personal experiences with the man known as Kirei Kotomine.

Shirou's recent meeting with the person in question left a vile taste in his mouth, as if the man exuded maliciousness despite his occupation.

"Well, he's only the supervisor for the war, so hopefully we won't have to deal with him very often."

Rin opts to remain cautiously optimistic about their future encounters with the priest.

They walk back to their homes in silence under the moon's bright rays.

"Hey, Emiya-kun. I was serious about what I said earlier. Starting tomorrow, you and I really will be enemies."

She looks at Shirou with a serious gleam in her eyes.

He looks down pensively and replies.

"I know. But even so, I don't really want to fight you, or anyone else. I just don't want people to get hurt."

Rin sighs, as if she clearly expected such a response.

"This is a war, Emiya-kun. People will die, and there's nothing you can do to prevent that."

"Then I'll just have to become stronger!"

Shirou replies with absolute conviction in his voice.

"I won't let innocents die, not again."

He still vividly remembers the fire that consumed his life ages ago.

Even now, it still haunts his dreams like a lingering curse.

But as he reminiscences, a chilly voice cuts through the air.

"Hey, have you finished talking?"

Up on the hill, the moon shines down on a little girl and her giant.

The red-eyed, albino Master dressed in purple pales in comparison to the splendid form of her Servant. Her vassal is majestic, with bulging muscles, a chiseled face, and a finely crafted bow slung over his shoulder.

Truly, the Servant could only be described as the epitome of heroism.

The girl curtsies and introduces herself.

"Good evening, Rin, Onii-chan. I am Ilyasviel von Einzbern."

"Einzbern -!"

Rin freezes in recognition of that name.

Shirou, on the other hand, is still confused at the manner in which she addressed him.

Ilya smiles angelically as she orders her Servant.

"Archer. Kill them all."

The giant rumbles in response.

"As you wish, Master."

In the blink of an eye, Archer unleashes a barrage of arrows. The air screams as the projectiles blitz toward their targets, carrying with them a promise of imminent demise.

The other Servants react instantly, grabbing their Masters and leaping to safety.

"Gah!"

One of the arrows land near Shirou, and the force of the impact is enough to crater the ground and send debris into his face.

"Are you alright, Shirou-san?"

Sakuya expresses his concern, but Shirou waves it off.

"I'll be fine. More importantly, how are we going to deal with that thing?!"

His Servant merely gives him a small smile.

"Just stay safe and leave it to me, Shirou-san."

With that, he materializes his battle outfit and speeds off into the night.

Nearby, Rin looks shocked at Sakuya's confidence.

"He thinks he can take on what must be at least an A-rank Servant alone, fueled only by the mana reserves of a third-rate magus?!"

She turns to Saber in a hurry.

"Go help him Saber! Ilya and her Archer will most definitely be a large threat in this war, and if we can take them out now, that'll save us a lot of trouble."

Saber nods her assent and rushes after her ally.

xxx

Sakuya had spent a whole lifetime fighting against superhumans with strange and powerful abilities. He had grown accustomed to the myriad of possible abilities that they could bring to bear against him, from turning projectiles into homing rays of light to producing any type of chemical at will, and learned how to overcome each one.

He never would have thought that a mere bow and arrow could become such a deadly weapon in comparison.

Arrows whistled down at him, each being dodged with a hair's breadth or knocked aside by his arms. Traps littered the ground near the peak of the hill, subtle disfigurations in the landscape that most observers would overlook, but nonetheless effective at providing the opportunity for a fatal blow if triggered. Sakuya's analytic mind was pushed to the brink in his effort to close the gap while avoiding both the arrows and the minefield around him.

Eventually, he breaks through the kill zone and into Archer's defensive position.

Immediately, he rushes in for a powerful blow, but the giant blocks it with his muscular forearms. Shockwaves reverberate from the collision, and Archer is the one to leap away from the exchange.

"To think there exists a Servant whose regular attacks can pierce through my God Hand, I am truly blessed to have the opportunity to exchange blows with you."

He holsters his bow and settles into a martial arts stance.

"I may be an Archer for this war, but that does not mean my fists have lost their sting. Come, and show me your worth!"

Sakuya smiles at his opponent's challenge and retorts.

"I was once the peak of humanity's potential back in my era, and I too am glad to have a worthy adversary to test myself against!"

They rush in and exchange a flurry of blows. Each collision shakes the ground from the sheer force in each punch and kick. Slowly, they are weathered down by the hits that sneak past each of their defenses.

Any other match-up would have been decided instantly in the first few seconds, but between these two Servants, their strength, speed, and durability all rival the other's.

Truly, this can only be called a battle between titans.

However, their stalemate is interrupted by a flash of steel through the night.

Archer narrowly avoids Saber's invisible blade, even with most of his attention on Sakuya.

The giant frowns.

"A two-on-one would likely be beyond even my capabilities, so I'll guess I'll have to resort to this."

Archer leaps backward, but as the other two Servants attempt to pursue him, birdlike constructs speed through the air toward them, moving erratically and firing small blasts of magical energy. While ultimately harmless to such high-level beings, they perform their intended task of briefly distracting them.

In this small window of opportunity, he brings out his bow and unleashes his trump card.

 _Nine Lives: Shooting the Hundred Heads._

An ultimate technique that can adapt to any situation; in this scenario it is used to fire one hundred arrows in the span of a single breath, creating a lethal barrage that very few can stand against or avoid.

Sakuya's eyes widen, knowing that neither he nor Saber could possibly survive such an attack.

 _I can't die here; I won't fail in my role as protector ever again! If I am unable to withstand this as I am now, then I'll just have to . . . Rewrite myself!_

However, even if he is far more advanced than his successor was at the technique, he still needs a moment for his power to enact the changes. Time that he doesn't have, unless . . .

His eyes dart to Saber, and he rapidly conceives a plan.

"Saber-san! Cover me while I prepare!"

The knight briefly starts in surprise, but decides to trust her ally. She swiftly moves to act as a shield against the rain of arrows.

 _Now, let's draw from this well of power once more._

Focusing his mind, he visualizes his power. It appears to him as a series of glowing green lights, and he feels the burn in his body as it consumes life force to alter his body.

However, unknown to him, the power was not consuming _his_ life force. After all, as a Servant, he is merely a construct, not a true living thing. So instead, the power searched for the next most suitable candidate.

His Master.

Back near the outskirts of the fight, Shirou Emiya collapses to the ground as he feels a massive drain on his body. Besides him, Rin panics and begins to frantically attempt to diagnose and treat him.

Meanwhile, Sakuya was guiding his power to make the necessary changes to take on Archer's Noble Phantasm. Remembering some of the knowledge the Grail imparted to him, he recalls a particular skill that might aid him in this situation.

 _Protection From Arrows is exactly what I need! But a low rank version of that skill wouldn't save us from that barrage. No, the variant I need must transcend normal limits-!_

As his body slowly accepts the changes from his Noble Phantasm, he can only pray that Saber buys enough time for him to complete his preparations.

xxx

As the rain of death begins to shower down on her, Saber can only prepare herself to stand her ground no matter what. As a knight, one of her foremost duties is to protect others, and she does not intend to falter in that path.

She will simply need to have faith that whatever her comrade is planning, it will be enough to bail them out of their precarious situation.

Once the barrage is on her, she has no room left for any trivial thoughts. All she can think of is desperately deflecting all the arrows coming at her. They come one right after another, often overlapping to the point there is no delay between each projectile's impact.

Despite her best efforts, she is mercilessly pummeled by the storm of fletching. All she can do is prevent the arrows from striking a fatal point.

But before the barrage is even half-way done, she slips up. The bolts are too close together, and each is aimed at a vital point on her body. She has no time to avoid all of them, and her armor has already been shredded from previous blows.

She can only wait for the end to slowly creep toward her.

But this time, the hero is saved by the monster.

"Get back!"

A figure with blood-red eyes that burn like hellfire leaps in front of her.

His overcoat is the color of midnight and flow behind him like a trail of shadows.

Bone-white bandages cover his neck, the ends dangling loosely, in stark contrast to his dark attire.

For a brief moment, she thought she had been saved by a demon from the pits of hell.

"Thank you for your bravery, Saber-san."

He gives her a small smile.

"Now allow me to return the favor."

Her eyes widen as she watches the impossible unfold in front of her.

xxx

Sakuya faces off against the remaining barrage of arrows.

Although less than half has already been spent, more than enough remained to finish off any other Servant.

But Sakuya was no ordinary Servant.

His eyes scanned the projectiles, his mind awhirl with computations and calculations that no human could possibly follow.

The sheer density and speed of Archer's Noble Phantasm would have been impossible to defend against even with a Rank B "Protection From Arrows" Skill.

After all, there comes a point where there are simply too many to deflect at once.

So Sakuya simply had to take it to the next level.

Using _Rewrite_ , he gave himself a Rank A version of that skill.

At such a level, whenever Sakuya encounters a ranged attack that would normally outstrip his capabilities, his abilities are enhanced to the point where he _can_ fend it off.

So, as he faced down the storm of arrows, he could feel the world itself aid him by outlining the most efficient method to deflect the incoming projectiles and by boosting his speed to the point he had the _ability_ to keep up with the rate of fire.

In a fraction of a second, it was over.

Sakuya stood in front of an astounded Saber, with arrow fletching littering the ground around him, none the worse for wear.

Archer too, expressed his amazement with a significantly raised eyebrow.

Then slowly, he applauds.

"I commend you, hero, for standing firm against my ultimate technique and prevailing. Were this back in the Age of Gods, surely you would be elevated to Godhood for performing such a feat."

His laughter sounds like the rumbling of the earth.

"I am indeed most blessed to be summoned in the same war as a hero like you!"

Ilya walks out of the shadows, clearly displeased by the outcome of the battle.

For her, what she thought would be akin to routine pest extermination has become a matter that she would need to take seriously.

"Archer, stop complimenting the opposition and let's go already!"

Archer stoops over and picks up his Master.

"The young miss is unhappy, so I must take my leave now. I look forward to our rematch, fellow heroes."

They swiftly vanish into the night.

xxx

Rin is very worried right now.

Shirou had collapsed in front of her for no apparent reason, and she was unable to figure out why.

As a genius, she prided herself on her vast store of knowledge and her ability to apply it to any given situation.

But this was something she had never seen before.

"Come on, Emiya-kun. Hang in there!"

Shirou rolls around on the ground and moans.

Rin gritted her teeth. Since she had to provide a constant stream of prana to her Servant, there wasn't much left over for her to use to attempt to heal the boy in front of her. All she could do was set him in a comfortable position and use what prana she could spare to ease his pain.

 _Hopefully, our Servants will finish up soon._

Saber was considered the strongest class, and combined with another Servant to back her up, she was relatively confident in the tag team's odds of taking down a lone Servant.

However, if Saber was the strongest class, then the Einzbern family could be considered the strongest Masters.

With their homunculi research, they could _create_ a Master that can provide nigh infinite prana to a Servant.

With such a large supply to draw from, even a weak Servant could potentially overpower stronger ones with constant use of a fairly powerful Noble Phantasm.

As Rin begins to worry about what-ifs and worse case scenarios, she is interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps.

She whirls around, but relaxes upon seeing Saber and Berserker approaching.

Before she can ask what happened, Sakuya's face morphs into a panicked expression as he glimpses his Master's fallen form and immediately rushes over.

"Shirou-san!"

He immediately begins to heal his Master through the Servant contract while looking over the boy's body in an attempt to discern the cause of the ailment. After a long diagnosis period, his expression switches from panicked to crestfallen.

"Ah, so this was my fault."

His voice is empty and full of despair.

"I misinterpreted the cost of my Noble Phantasm, and now my Master is paying the price."

He shakes his head mournfully.

"What sort of Servant am I if I cannot even protect my Master from harm?"

"It was a necessary sacrifice for the sake of survival."

Saber cuts through Sakuya's cloud of depression.

"If you had not used your Noble Phantasm, I doubt either of us would have survived. In that outcome, both our Masters would be at the mercy of that girl and Archer. This is the lesser of two evils."

Her face softens.

"This was a regrettable, but necessary sacrifice."

Sakuya still looks troubled, but his posture loosens.

"I see. Thank you for your words of wisdom, Saber-san."

He picks up Shirou's limp form and prepares to depart.

"Shirou-san will need rest to recuperate from the sudden drain on his body. I bid you good night, Rin-san, Saber-san."

His farewells said, he vanishes into the night.

xxx

 _He sees a desolate world, forsaken of any living things aside from vegetation._

 _He sees a cherry tree that seems wilted, its boughs sagging to the ground as if it was ashamed._

 _He sees evolution take its course, giving rise to new life at the cost of the old generation._

 _Eventually, he sees the first humans arise and give birth to civilization. They progress; they fight wars, create governments, and advance technology. Finally, they arrive at what seems to be a modern age, filled with wonderous marvels._

 _A secret but vibrant community sprouts up near the sakura tree. The people use what seems to be a well, overflowing with life energy, to create strange and exotic creatures._

 _But despite this involvement with the supernatural, they still act like normal humans. They play, laugh, and love just like any other._

 _One of them takes a branch from the cherry tree, and fashions it into a familiar for his daughter. The girl is overjoyed, and they share a tender embrace._

 _However, the peace did not last, and enemies from outside the village invade and slaughter the residents._

 _He desperately wants to reach out and save these people; his instincts as a self-proclaimed "Hero of Justice" demanded it of him._

 _But there is nothing he can do; after all, he is merely a spectator._

 _The girl from before stumbles and collapses in front of the cherry tree. Behind her, he can see a pursuer quickly closing the gap. She prays at the base of the tree, begging to be saved. He wants to offer his help, to save her just as he had been saved._

 _But someone else answers her plea. A black-haired man dressed in a white hakama appears in front her and offers his hand. The girl shakily accepts, and he can tell that a promise has been made._

 _The enemy catches up and rushes in to take the girl's life._

 _But the man crosses the distance in a split second, and with a single blow, strikes the foe down. The man picks up the girl, who has passed out, and walks away from the carnage that has claimed her old life._

 _He looks back at the cherry tree, and notices that it seemed to stand just a little taller now._

xxx

Shirou wakes up with a start.

His dream had been unusually vivid, almost as if he had been reliving a memory.

Perhaps it really was a remnant of the past.

"Was that the dream cycle that Tohsaka-san spoke of?"

If so, that means the images he had just seen were scenes from his Servant's past.

"Good morning, Shirou-san."

Sakuya stood in the doorway, wearing his butler outfit once more. He carried a tray with tea and a nutritious breakfast.

He enters and sets the meal on a nearby stand, then sits next to the bed with a neutral expression on his face.

"How are you feeling?"

Shirou stretches his body, then replies.

"I feel a little tired, but other than that, I feel perfectly fine."

Sakuya frowns a little.

 _The effects of forcibly taking life force from someone who has no experience channeling it should be more severe than this._

He shakes his head to dispel the thought.

 _Enough! I should be glad that my mistake did not overly harm my Master instead of ruminating on the matter of why._

Even so, there was still something he had to do. He stands up and bows deeply.

"I am really sorry about last night, Shirou-san. You were injured because of my own carelessness with our contract."

He bows his head further, clear expecting some sort of reprisal for the events that transpired.

Shirou could only smile and shake his head at his Servant's remorse.

"What do you have to be sorry for? I'm not entirely sure what happened, but if anything, it's my own inadequacy as a Master. I was effectively useless in that whole ordeal; the only thing I could do was provide you with prana, and I'm not even particularly skilled in that capacity. If you needed to take more than I could easily handle at once, I don't mind."

"That's not what I was referring to!"

Sakuya quickly retorts.

"In life, my Noble Phantasm consumed my life force to fuel its use. As a Servant, it still holds that trait, but since I lack any life force of my own, it instead took it from you, my Master."

He bows his head, ashamed.

"Now don't you see? I just shortened your lifespan through my own recklessness. What kind of Servant am I if I harm the very one I am meant to protect?!"

"If that's what it takes to help others, then I would still be willing to pay that price."

Shirou smiles sadly.

"After all, that's the only worth my life will ever have."

Sakuya's head shoots up at his Master's outrageous claims. He also has a strong desire to help others, but he feels that there is one radical difference between their ways of thinking.

"Why do you think like that . . .?"

"Because my life was saved when everyone else died. It wouldn't be fair to the deceased if I put myself before others."

Sakuya nods slowly. He's beginning to understand Shirou's motives a bit better now.

Carefully, he asks.

"Shirou-san, if you had to choose between saving one person, or one hundred, which would you choose?"

"I would save the one hundred people."

Shirou responds without hesitation.

Sakuya's face hardens a little.

"Even if the one was someone close to you?"

"Even so."

Shirou does not even factor his own emotions into the decision.

For him, for the pursuit of his ideals as a Hero of Justice, there is only one path.

To save as many as possible.

Something like personal attachments would only be a burden to one who would follow that road.

Sakuya's face becomes stony.

For someone like him, one who would destroy the world to save the girl he loved, someone like Shirou irritated him to no end.

A Master and Servant united in their ideals to save others, but diverged on who to save.

How did the Holy Grail ever match these two together?

"Shirou-san, I assume that you did not use a catalyst to summon me?"

Shirou shakes his head.

"I didn't even know that I would end up summoning a Servant."

Sakuya ponders on the conundrum; he knows that they weren't exactly compatible enough for Shirou to summon him without a catalyst, but his Master claims he did not prepare one.

 _What would even serve as a catalyst for me? I did not leave anything behind when I disappeared from the world, and neither of my former masters were present at the summoning._

He thinks back to the first time he was called.

To the time where a girl knelt before a tree and begged to be saved.

Slowly, an idea forms in his head.

"Shirou-san, what was going through your head the moment before Lancer would have killed you?"

Shirou thinks back to that chilling moment and answers slowly.

"Although it was selfish for one like me to ask for it, in that moment, I wanted to be saved."

Sakuya smiles.

"That desire is likely what served as an unorthodox catalyst. We are also fairly compatible, so that likely played a large role in my summoning as well."

However, something about his Master's ideals still nagged at him.

"Shirou-san, what is your dream?"

The boy in question smiles brightly as he states.

"I'm going to be a Hero of Justice who can save everyone!"

Sakuya shakes his head slowly at the childish wish.

"You won't find happiness following that path."

But Shirou is not deterred.

"As long as everyone else is happy, I'll be content."

But Sakuya knows that isn't true.

 _You will only be happy once you find something precious you can treasure._

Images of long orange hair, clear blue eyes, and wing-like clips flash through his mind.

 _Merely watching others achieve their happiness won't satisfy the emptiness in your heart._

He knows that if the boy continues on his current path, it will only lead to tragedy.

As he watches his Master devour his breakfast, he wonders to himself.

 _How can I save someone from themselves?_

* * *

 **Servant Stat Sheet**

 **Class:** Berserker

 **Master:** Shirou Emiya

 **True Name:** Sakuya Ohtori

 **Alignment:** Neutral Good

 _ **Parameters**_

Strength: A

Endurance: B (A)

Agility: A

Mana: E

Luck: E

 _ **Class Skills**_

Mad Enhancement: N/A

Replaced with Final Familiar Form.

Magic Resistance: E

Cancels low-ranking spells.

 _ **Personal Skills**_

The Familiar's Contract - Healing: B

Berserker can heal his master through the servant contract and vice versa.

Guardian: C-

Having spent his whole life protecting others, Berserker gains a bonus to his parameters whenever he acts in the defense of another.

The Familiar's Contract - Summoning: B+

Berserker can be summoned to his master's side at a small cost to mana.

Battle Continuation: A

Makes it possible to fight even with deadly injuries and can remain alive so long as Berserker does not receive a fatal blow.

 _ **Noble Phantasms**_

 **Aurora Bandages** \- **A Barrier Between Life and Death**

Type: Support, Rank C+

Covering Berserker's body, these aurora infused armaments are highly durable and can protect against most forms of attack. Improves Endurance parameter, and can be bestowed upon others to grant protection.

 **Final Familiar Form** \- **The Earth's Rage Incarnate**

Type: Anti-Unit (Self), Rank A-

Berserker transforms into a giant draconic familiar with purplish wood-like skin, a muscular build, horns on each side of his head, and demon-like wings, along with fiery energy surging along the lines and joints of his body. While in this form, he can use many branch-like appendages to attack his foes, and he gains the ability to draw mana from the surrounding environment to sustain himself. Additionally, all parameters are greatly increased but Berserker loses his ability to reason. Only a command seal can undo the transformation.

 **Rewrite** – **The Will to Change the World by Changing Oneself**

Type: Anti-Unit (Self), Rank EX

By consuming life energy, Berserker can alter his body at will. He can change his parameters, skills, and the shape and form of his body; however, any alterations are permanent.


End file.
